**01** Guides # API docs: your first request in five minutes apiauto.space is a JSON REST API: used-car catalogs of Korea (Encar), China (Che168) and US auctions (Copart, IAAI) in one record format. South Korea (Encar) — more than 140,000 active cars; China (Che168) — more than 230,000; USA (Copart and IAAI) — more than 80,000. How the markets differ: [data boundaries](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/markets/). ## Base URL and schema | What | Value | | --- | --- | | Base URL | `https://api.apiauto.space/v1` | | Format | JSON, UTF-8; times in ISO 8601 UTC | | Key | `X-API-Key` — [key and headers](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/auth/) | | Pagination | by cursor: next_cursor of the previous page | | Schema | [openapi.json](https://api.apiauto.space/openapi.json) · [Swagger UI](https://api.apiauto.space/docs/swagger) · [Redoc](https://api.apiauto.space/docs/redoc) | ## The integration cycle 1. **Import** Copy a market to your side: `GET /v1/cars` with the cursor, up to 100 cars per request. 2. **Poll the changes** Once an hour ask `GET /v1/changes?since=…`: new cars, removed cars and price changes. 3. **Update** Fetch new ones by `GET /v1/cars/{id}`, mark removed ones as sold. In detail: [keeping a catalog in sync](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/sync/). ## Quick start 1. Open [the bot](https://t.me/apiautospace_bot?start=demo) and take a demo key: one day, 100 data requests, up to 20 cars per request, all three markets. 2. Save the key in the APIAUTO_KEY environment variable: it is shown once. 3. Send a request: curl: ```bash curl -s "https://api.apiauto.space/v1/cars?market=kr&brand=Kia&limit=20" \ -H "X-API-Key: $APIAUTO_KEY" ``` Python · httpx: ```python import os import httpx client = httpx.Client( base_url="https://api.apiauto.space/v1", headers={"X-API-Key": os.environ["APIAUTO_KEY"]}, timeout=30, ) # Two pages of 20: every car returned counts against the quota. params = {"market": "kr", "brand": "Kia", "limit": 20} for _ in range(2): page = client.get("/cars", params=params).raise_for_status().json() for car in page["items"]: print(car["id"], car["title"], car["price"]) if not page["next_cursor"]: break params["cursor"] = page["next_cursor"] ``` JavaScript · fetch: ```js const response = await fetch( "https://api.apiauto.space/v1/cars?market=cn&limit=20", { headers: { "X-API-Key": process.env.APIAUTO_KEY } }, ); if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`${response.status}: ${await response.text()}`); const { items, next_cursor } = await response.json(); console.log(items.map((car) => car.title)); console.log("records left:", response.headers.get("X-Quota-Remaining")); ``` PHP: ```php ["X-API-Key: " . getenv("APIAUTO_KEY")], CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true, ]); $body = curl_exec($ch); $status = curl_getinfo($ch, CURLINFO_RESPONSE_CODE); curl_close($ch); if ($status !== 200) { throw new RuntimeException("HTTP $status: $body"); } foreach (json_decode($body, true)["items"] as $car) { echo $car["id"], " ", $car["title"], PHP_EOL; } ``` Ready clients exist: `pip install apiauto-space` — [the Python library](https://pypi.org/project/apiauto-space/), `npm i apiauto` — [the JavaScript and TypeScript library](https://www.npmjs.com/package/apiauto). Their code and Encar examples are [on GitHub](https://github.com/apiauto-space). The answer is a page of cars and the cursor of the next page. One record looks like this (shortened: two photo links and the first raw fields): GET /v1/cars/encar:43123480: ```json { "id": "encar:43123480", "market": "kr", "source": "encar", "source_id": "43123480", "title": "2024 Volvo V60 Cross Country 2 Gen B5 Ultimate AWD", "brand": "Volvo", "model": "V60 Cross Country", "generation": "V60 Cross Country 2 Gen", "trim": "B5 Ultimate AWD", "year": 2024, "mileage_km": 33375, "fuel": "gasoline", "transmission": null, "engine_cc": null, "body_type": null, "color": null, "vin": null, "price": { "amount": "40900000.00", "currency": "KRW" }, "price_usd": "30101.68", "location": { "country": "KR", "region": "Daegu", "city": null }, "photo_count": 4, "listing_url": "https://fem.encar.com/cars/detail/43123480", "is_active": true, "first_seen_at": "2026-11-09T10:07:40.261677Z", "last_seen_at": "2026-11-09T10:07:40.261677Z", "disappeared_at": null, "updated_at": "2026-11-09T10:07:40.261677Z", "source_mode": "replica", "photos": [ "https://api.apiauto.space/img/encar:43123480/1.jpg?exp=…&sig=…", "https://api.apiauto.space/img/encar:43123480/2.jpg?exp=…&sig=…" ], "raw": { "badge": "B5 얼티메이트 AWD", "has_vin": false, "form_year": "202405", "sell_type": "normal", "body_class": null, "office_city": "대구", "badge_detail": null, "has_accident": false } } ``` Keep the key on your server. The API does not allow browser requests (CORS is off), and a key in page code is visible to every visitor. ## Guides [**Key and headers**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/auth/)How to send the API key in the X-API-Key header, where to keep it, how to rotate it and what the quota and rate-limit response headers mean. [**Keeping a catalog in sync**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/sync/)How to import the Encar, Che168 or Copart and IAAI catalog with a cursor and keep it fresh from the change feed: new and removed cars and prices. [**The car record and photos**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/record/)The car record's fields, the same for Encar, Che168, Copart and IAAI: make, model, price, mileage, place, photos and raw; how the signed photo links work. [**Quota and limits**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/limits/)What the quota counts — cars and events, not requests; the limits of the four plans, the monthly reset and the key after the paid period. [**Errors**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/errors/)The error response body and HTTP codes from 400 to 503 with the error field: what each one means, what to do on 402, 429 and 503 and when to retry. [**Data boundaries**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/markets/)How the Korea, China and USA data differ in the API: size, refresh, VIN, photos, what each source lacks and how to learn the age of a market copy. [**Versions and changelog**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/changelog/)Compatibility rules within /v1: fields are only added, breaking changes will ship under /v2. What changed in the API, month by month. ## Endpoints [`GET /v1/cars` **Car catalog**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/endpoints/cars/)The GET /v1/cars endpoint: filters by make, model, year, price and mileage, sorting, the cursor and sample answers with real Encar, Che168, Copart and IAAI cars. [`GET /v1/cars/{id}` **Car by id**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/endpoints/car/)The GET /v1/cars/{id} endpoint: the full record of one Encar, Che168, Copart or IAAI car by an id like encar:…, including cars taken off sale within 14 days. [`GET /v1/changes` **Change feed**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/endpoints/changes/)The GET /v1/changes endpoint: new cars, cars taken off sale, price drops and rises with a percentage threshold — since a moment, with a cursor. [`GET /v1/us/live` **Live US search**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/endpoints/live/)The GET /v1/us/live endpoint: search Copart and IAAI lots at the auction data provider when a car is not in the copy. Pro and Max plans, a separate counter. [`GET /v1/references/…` **References**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/endpoints/references/)Free references: a market's makes and models with car counts, the allowed values of fuel, gearbox and body, and market freshness. They spend no quota. [`GET /v1/usage` **Quota usage**](https://apiauto.space/en/docs/endpoints/usage/)The GET /v1/usage endpoint: the plan, its term, the period quota and how much of it is spent — in total and per market, live US search included. Free. | More | What it does | Quota | | --- | --- | --- | | `GET /img/{id}/{n}.jpg` | A car photo by the signed link from the record. | free | | `GET /healthz` | Health: 503 when any market is past its freshness threshold. | free | --- Page: https://apiauto.space/en/docs/